THE PRENATAL PERIOD – before birth – adverse experiences for the pregnant mother may affect the behaviour of the offspring. These include the lack of a balanced diet or a stressful experience such as being hit by a car.
THE NEONATAL PERIOD – birth to 2 weeks – a constant human interference will interrupt the instinctive relationship between mother and puppy and can have a detrimental attain on the pup in later life. A puppy who has never had a human touch or external stimulation can grow up less confident and emotionally stable. The need for a blissful balance is well-known if future stability is needed. The needs of a puppy at this stage are; food, warmth, rest, urination and defaecation.
THE SOCIALIZATION PERIOD -3 to 12 weeks – This happens quick and is when particular responses are acquired most readily and bonds are made. The socialisation period is characterised by interactions with family, people and its surroundings. The pup learns how to dominate or submit during this stage. Environmental issues at this stage have the greatest finish on the behaviour as an adult.
THE JUVENILE PERIOD – 12 weeks to 2 years – This happens at the waste of the socialization period but the timing is not distinct gash. Many puppies regress at around 6 months traditional when they have a heightened awareness of stimuli previously tolerated such as traffic or strangers which can provoke a unnerved response. The puppy is now frail enough to initiate training to heel and stop on assure. This can only be for short periods at a time to start with at first.
THE ADULTHOOD PERIOD – 2years ancient is generally popular as the age of adulthood. This is when entire male dogs accomplish a inform for dominance, either captivating the owner or other dogs in the house. Traumatic experiences which occur during the socialization period between 3 and 12 weeks of age can have a detrimental consequences and attribute to behaviour problems during adult life. This period is characterized by interactions with it’s litter mates, it’s mother, with people and the surroundings.
The more certain experiences that the puppy encounters during this time, the more stable the puppy will be going into adulthood. It should be remembered that this is usually a very stressful time for a puppy as usually they are re-homed at around this age and if the disappear is traumatic it can have an affect on the adult dog.
The best circumstances in which to lift a puppy include;
HOME-REARED – where the puppy has been exposed to human handling along with a variety of everyday sights, sounds and smells.
HEALTHY AGE – no younger than 6 weeks of age.
TEMPERAMENT – of both bitch and dog should be observed and the bitches behaviour with the puppies.
THE unusual HOME – should be as similar as possible to the old-fashioned home to minimize stress. Most of these points are celebrated sense but people unexcited select puppies at 4 weeks veteran, without seeing the mother, from a pet shop, or a puppy that has been ill. They then wonder why they experience problems later.
There are arguments for and against the BEST age to separate a puppy from its mother.
Puppies bought from pet shops or puppy farms are likely to have problems as adults as are puppies who have suffered illness, they suffer from anxiety induced aggression or excessive barking; this is a result of forced isolation and painful experiences.
Puppies that leave their mother at a relatively unhurried time such as 16 – 24 weeks can point to an increased awe of other dogs and traffic. This may be due to a kennel – reared upbringing or a lack of stimuli.
Some psychologists beget that puppies should conclude with the mother until 12 weeks of age as before this time puppies are very vulnerable but this is also after the crucial stages of socialization.
Puppies removed at 6 weeks showed a loss of appetite, increased wound and a susceptibility to illness.
The optimum time for socialization is between 6 – 8 weeks when the puppy’s instinct to produce friends with strangers overcomes its natural wariness and is why it is advocated the ideal time to prefer the puppy from its mother and litter mates to a original home.
There are gaps in our original knowledge of the early development of behaviour problems. We do not know a colossal deal about what crosses the placenta to the unborn puppy and this may affect behaviour.
Research shows that puppies are particularly vulnerable to psychological wound resulting in behavioral problems. With children we can monitor progress through interview, dream interpretation and free association but with our puppies we can only guess at what might have occurred.
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